Etymograph

English

precognition

Precognition comes from Latin praecognitio, from praecognōscō ‘to know beforehand’, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- ‘to recognise’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵneh₃-1‘to recognise’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵn̥h₃sḱéti1‘to recognise’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*gnōskō1‘to know, get to know’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEgnōscō1‘to know’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcognōscō2‘to learn, to get to know’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpraecognōscō3‘to know beforehand’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpraecognitio3
  8. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600precognition3uncertain
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1824precognition3

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, Latin cognosco
  2. 2 Wiktionary, Latin praecognosco
  3. 3 Wiktionary, English precognition
  4. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1824, James Hogg: “‘But it seems there are some strong presumptuous proofs…”.

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵneh₃-Wiktionary, Latin cognosco‘to recognise’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*ǵn̥h₃sḱétiWiktionary, Latin cognosco‘to recognise’reconstructed
  3. Proto-Italicc. 1500–700 BCE*gnōskōWiktionary, Latin cognosco‘to know, get to know’reconstructed
  4. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEgnōscōWiktionary, Latin cognosco‘to know’
  5. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEcognōscōWiktionary, Latin praecognosco‘to learn, to get to know’
  6. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpraecognōscōWiktionary, English precognition‘to know beforehand’
  7. Latinc. 75 BCE–200 CEpraecognitioWiktionary, English precognition
  8. Middle Frenchc. 1400–1600precognitionWiktionary, English precognitionuncertain
  9. Englishearliest quotation 1824precognitionWiktionary, English precognition. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1824, James Hogg: “‘But it seems there are some strong presumptuous proofs…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- ‘to recognise’

can, know, could, normal, glory, narrative, ken, ignore, keen, norm, ignorant, con, cunning, prognosis, narration, canny, connoisseur, canna, uncouth, kith, gnosis, cun, recognizance, 85 more

through Proto-Indo-European *ǵn̥h₃sḱéti ‘to recognise’

diagnostic, gnome, agnostic, 40 more

through Proto-Italic *gnōskō ‘to know, get to know’

denote, annotation, noblesse, ignoble, 34 more

through Latin gnōscō ‘to know’

note, notice, noble, notion, notorious, nobility, notoriety, notary, notation, acquaint, annotate, 34 more

through Latin cognōscō ‘to learn, to get to know’

recognize, cognitive, quaint, incognito, cognizance, 14 more

Today it means

noun Knowledge of the future; understanding of something in advance, especially as a form of supernatural or extrasensory perception.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “precognition”; the older steps come from the Wiktionary entries for Latin cognosco, Latin praecognosco. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- / precognition

Shirt and support for this word